BLT vs. PBJ

Hey I was wonder if anyone had experience with one or both of these bikes. I haven't had much luck finding reviews or much information other than the little info on the Transition website. I can see the obvious differences in geometry but I was looking for a bit more perspective.
I even wrote an email a month ago to Transition but didn't get anything back from them.
They both look like great bikes but unfortunately I don't know anyone with one and we don't have a dealer near where I live and even if I did they probably wouldn't stock one.

Ok so currently I ride a 2007 Eastern night train with a 80mm Rock Shox Argyle RC.
I come from a BMX (race and dirt) back ground but I've been riding MTB the last 5 years and now getting back into the more BMX style riding the last 2 years but prefer the 26 inch wheels and it is time to upgrade bikes.

Lars from TBC here. I have a background of racing BMX and riding trails through the 90's and had some input on the geo for the PBJ. This frame was designed with that style of riding in mind. It's meant to be more stable at high speeds, and more comfortable on bigger lines. Slacker hta, and more bb drop than the BLT.

The BLT was designed with the park style rider in mind. This frame is going to be a bit better on smaller and tighter terrain. Ie, skateparks and pumptracks. It will have a bit quicker steering due to the steeper hta, and manual easier due to the 0 bb drop.

Both could suit you depending on how hard you're willing to push it. The PBJ will require more input to rip the tighter sections of the pumptracks because the slacker hta, but you can be rewarded when riding bigger stuff.

The wheelbase of the BLT is a bit shorter as well, so it will require less effort to maneuver but can be a little sketchier when going big and fast.

Thanks man that is the best info I have gotten so far.... I'm really looking for the more do it all DJ bike... I really like riding park, pump tracks and DJ's our dj's are between 4-6ft lips and between 10-15 foot peak to peak... nothing super massive... more like what you would see at lets say Valmont or most public bike parks....

I know what all that means, and I understand the differences. I'm just not 100% sure of what my riding will be and which way I might want to bias down the road. Our community park is in development, with a pump track and a couple minor jump lines in at the moment. I've ridden them on 4-5 different DJ bikes and on a friend's custom 24" BMX, which he built with super short stays, so it rides more like a BMX than a cruiser. I'm also unlikely to ever go big on any jump lines - cleaning them with a whip will probably be enough for me. Considering that I like the 24", I'm leaning BLT. And the BLT comes in orange.

My buddy's shop just became a dealer, and the first PBJ came in today. He's planning on having a few rentals, so hopefully I'll get a chance to try both before committing one way or the other.

Dang went with the baller build.... upgrade to the fox fork! I'll probably go with the rock shock... on a budget..I dig that blue color too! It would be cool if transition did an in depth review video on both bikes like they do on other models or a magazine like Bike did one ... but nothing beats the good old test ride. Let us know how that goes!

Lars question on sizing? I'm 5'10" I was thinking a small BLT. My current Dj bike is 21.5 TT with a 50mm stem.

So I was at Ray's in milwaukee this weekend and rode a Large BLT and it felt enormous! and the geo shows on the website that the small is only 1 inch smaller is that accurate? is there a benefit to having such a large bike? I wish I could find a small to test ride. Is the size difference noticeable? starting to wonder if the bike is going to be too large? if the 23 inch is accurate that is still quite a bit larger than my current rig and 1 inch longer than most dj bikes on the market these days

So I was at Ray's in milwaukee this weekend and rode a Large BLT and it felt enormous! and the geo shows on the website that the small is only 1 inch smaller is that accurate? is there a benefit to having such a large bike? I wish I could find a small to test ride. Is the size difference noticeable? starting to wonder if the bike is going to be too large? if the 23 inch is accurate that is still quite a bit larger than my current rig and 1 inch longer than most dj bikes on the market these days

That 23" measurement is for effective top tube which is kind of useless for a DJ bike. You get that measurement with the seat extended way up. Your 21.5 tt was probably measured by the actual tt length. The other geo numbers on the BLT are right in line for a normal sized small/medium DJ frame. It has a 41" wheelbase as well which is nice and short.

That 23" measurement is for effective top tube which is kind of useless for a DJ bike. You get that measurement with the seat extended way up. Your 21.5 tt was probably measured by the actual tt length. The other geo numbers on the BLT are right in line for a normal sized small/medium DJ frame. It has a 41" wheelbase as well which is nice and short.

thanks for the info... I was just nervous after I sat on the Large and kind of played around on it... It felt really big, too big for me, and I didn't know if the 1 inch difference was going to make a difference in the ride of the small... but you are right the wheel base seems pretty similar to most the bikes i've rode, and I am stoked on the rest of he GEO, just didn't want to end up with a bike that is too big for me

thanks for the info... I was just nervous after I sat on the Large and kind of played around on it... It felt really big, too big for me, and I didn't know if the 1 inch difference was going to make a difference in the ride of the small... but you are right the wheel base seems pretty similar to most the bikes i've rode, and I am stoked on the rest of he GEO, just didn't want to end up with a bike that is too big for me

I hear ya. I am about to order the small PBJ frame this week, so I was studying up on the geo too. : )

The bike park is under a couple feet of snow at the moment. Grr. Could be worse: my buddy's new Evil Uprising was a VitalMTB bike of the day this week, and he won't be riding it for a while, either.

And we figured out that we're going to have to install gravel and a French drain inside our pump track. Most winters it wouldn't be an issue, but we've had a good one. I've swept the track clear with 4"-5", but a foot or more is too much. With the landfill cap, it doesn't drain very well. That'll delay my inaugural ride a bit. [sigh]

Yeah bummer... we are sitting in MN with about 40+ inches of snow still on the ground still in the teens.... I wont be riding outside anytime soon either..... I'm saving my pennies still, waiting on my tax return to hopefully pick a blt up this month or next!

I have talked to a couple more people that have ridden or owned the BLT at FrostBike at QBP the other week and they all confirmed my interest.. They said it is is the best all around DJ bike they have ever owned or ridden and strongly recommend it! So now its just about the money for me, list has been shortened to 1!

I have talked to a couple more people that have ridden or owned the BLT at FrostBike at QBP the other week and they all confirmed my interest.. They said it is is the best all around DJ bike they have ever owned or ridden and strongly recommend it! So now its just about the money for me, list has been shortened to 1!

We had our club's annual kick-off party at my friend's shop on Friday. My BLT has been hanging out there for the last week or so waiting on some custom fork decals. I had 3 people come up to me Friday to say they'd ridden it around the shop and they were really impressed with it. Later in the night it made an appearance for some drunken rear wheel kickout competition.

Good question. My last two hardtails I owned was the 2010 santa cruz jackal and the 2012 Yeti DJ. Both were stiff aluminum hardtails and I liked both a lot. I ride mainly on my own pump track, a few jump trails and a few slalom courses. Size wise and geometry wise, the PBJ is very similar the medium Yeti DJ, with the pbj being a little smaller, and a little shorter in the rear. But ride feel wise, they are TOTALLY different.
The pbj has a very forgiving feel to it. Even just bouncing on the pedals, the frame has a springy, poppy feel to it, like it wants to load up and jump off of anything. It felt so comfortable, I was wondering how it was going to feel when I got on a fast pumptrack and was really pushing hard through the berms, but it felt really solid in this situation as well. I need some more ride time on it for a review, but I can already tell, I am gonna like it a lot.

BLT vs. PBJ

I am REALLY digging the BLT. I've just been monkeying around in parking lots and hitting the pump track and a small jump line, but man, it's fun. I'm excited for the park building that we have planned for this year!